Trish Anderson

This year is starting out very steady in my view.  There is a good balance of product and lots of qualified buyers.  With interest rates continuing at a good price, the buyer seem to have confidence in the ability to repay so are forging ahead.  Lots of sellers held off over Christmas and are now getting ready for the spring market so hang on to your hat.  I think we will have a really busy spring!

With showing lots of preconstruction it is interesting to see that the choice suites in most buildings are being picked very quickly.  I was over in North Coquitlam viewing all the new high rises there and was very impressed. 

 

If you are looking at buying a home for the first time you have come to the right place.  I totally enjoy working with those who are new to real estate.  I think it is so exciting to get someone into their first home or investment.  My family has been working in real estate as a business plus as our main investment for over 50 years.  There are many ways to get involved.  With so many programs where a buyer with good credit need not have a down payment and with the years to repay (amortization) set at 40 years it just gets easier and easier!

 

 

B.C. eases eligibility for homeowner grant

Times Colonist (Victoria) Wed 21 Feb 2007

 

Seniors rich in property but low on incomes are getting a break from the province to help keep them at home. This move, along with others announced in B.C.'s budget, tackles the issue of the erosion of affordable housing for home buyers and homeowners, said Cameron Muir, chief economist with the B.C. Real Estate Association. Seniors on fixed incomes with homes assessed at $950,000 or more will now be able to receive the full homeowner grant. "It allows them to age in place," Muir said. The criteria for low-income levels

The United States, Canada and all other modern industrial economies experience significant swings in economic activity. In some years most industries are booming and unemployment is low; in other years most industries are operating well below capacity and unemployment is high. Periods of economic expansion are typically called booms; periods of economic decline are called recessions or depressions. The combination of booms and recessions, the ebb and flow of economic activity, is called the economic cycle.

Of all the industries contained in the economic basket of goods and services, Real Estate is the one that is particularly susceptible to the

Vancouver, BC – January 12, 2007. Increasing the Home Owner Grant threshold to $950,000 from $780,000 in assessed value is good for homeowners and communities across BC. “Measures that help people pay their property taxes and enable them to live where they choose are always welcome,” says British Columbia Real Estate Association President Kelly Lerigny. Today’s announcement, made in response to increases in assessed property values, maintains the government’s stated objective of ensuring that 95 per cent of owners qualify for the basic grant. “Erosion in housing affordability is an issue across the province,” notes Lerigny, who suggests that people on

Albertans love British Columbia's waterfront cabins, ski chalets and resort condominiums.

And with oil wealth filling their coffers, our neighbours went on a real estate shopping spree in 2005, snapping up 4,320 B.C. properties worth almost $1.2 billion, making them the biggest out-of-province influence on many markets.

The real estate research firm Landcor compiled the data on who is buying in B.C., and company president Rudy Nielsen found that Albertans purchased more than twice the amount of B.C. real estate than the next three out-of-province groups combined.

And Nielsen added that these aren't people relocating to B.C., they're buyers

Buying and Selling Canadian PropertyAn Overview for Non-Residents Non-Residents Buying Canadian Real EstateThere are no restrictions for non-residents purchasing real estate in Canada, though they may become subject to Canadian income tax laws, and will certainly encounter the following taxes on their transactions:

Property Transfer Tax (British Columbia) – The tax rate is one per cent on the first $200,000 of the property's fair market value and two per cent on the remaining fair market value. For more information, visit the Government of British Columbia’s Property Taxation Branch’s website at www.rev.gov.bc.ca/rpt.

Goods and Services Tax (Canada)

                                                             Condo-market converts

With single-family house prices averaging $500,000, more first-time buyers are putting their money into less expensive highrise alternatives.            

 

                 

Getting Your House Ready to Sell

When getting your home ready to sell, you need to look at your house in a new way. Think of your house as a product about to go on the market where it is probably competing with brand new housing. It needs to show well–which means clutter-free and well kept.

Today’s homebuyers lead busy lives and may not be interested in taking on major repairs or improvements upon moving in. You need to make your house a “10”. This document will help you spot what is right and what is not so good about your product. It will give you the opportunity to take needed corrective action to ensure your house looks fresh, clean and well

Demographic changes will fuel demand for "move-up" homes and weaken demand for "first-time" residences over the next five years, a housing conference has heard. As baby boomers age, their taste in housing changes, Ted Tsiakopoulos, Ontario regional economist for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, explained to more than300 people gathered at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre last week. "Over the next three to five years, peak baby boomers will be driving housing demand,but not for the first time or for the second time. They will be driving demand for the third and fourth time," he told the Toronto Housing Outlook Conference, sponsored by the CMHC.